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How Does Women’s Car Insurance Differ?

Posted on January 31, 2013

Typically, the insurance policy and what it covers is no different for women than it is for men, but car insurers tend to view women as being less of a risk and safer drivers than men. This is more true for younger women, and means that they usually get a lower insurance premium than their male counterparts. A lot of men think that this is biased, but it makes sense on the part of the insurance company, as women on average tend to file less claims than men, and when they do claim they claim for less than men. So if the insurance company sees you as less of a risk, you will be paying less overall.

Insurance premiums change over time, and this is true for both men and women. The amount that a woman ends up paying on premiums is dependent on a number of factors, and these will change during their lifetime.

Car insurance is most expensive in the 18 – 24 age category, as this group has been shown to be prone to accidents and tend to be more careless drivers. As with the difference in premiums based on gender, this difference in premiums based on age has been based on statistical data gathered and reinforced over a number of years. A good driving record at this age, along with no claims and good marks in school can help reduce premiums until the age of 25.

From 25 until around 50, insurance premiums are the lowest for women. This is because insurance companies tend to view women as starting to settle down and have become safer drivers that claim less and claim for lower than their male counterparts. This tends to continue until old age sets in.

When the woman ages, insurance premiums start going up again, because it’s been shown that older drivers are more prone to accidents and are less safe on the road. From the age of 70 upwards, insurance premiums will start to rise almost yearly, and if an elderly woman has to claim, her premiums will go up severely or the policy can be cancelled.

However, in the UK and EU countries, preferential insurance based on gender is soon to be a thing of the past. A European Court of Justice ruling in March 2012 has ruled that gender specific pricing for car insurance based on statistical differences in risk profiles has to be removed. From the 21st of December 2012 insurance companies can no longer offer women reduced premiums, or consider gender in the car insurance quote at all. This is true for all insurance, not only car insurance, but it’s expected that the car insurance industry will be the one most affected, due to the preferential premiums given to women in the past.

The worst affected by this will be women in the 25 – 50 age category, since the differences in premiums will level off, meaning that women’s pricing will rise to meet that of men’s premiums, which may come as a bit of a shock to a number of women. People who are currently insured will most likely not be affected until their yearly insurance renewal, while people looking at new policies will already have been affected.

The best thing to do in this situation is the reduce your premium rather by being a safe driver with a low claims record, rather than relying on gender or statistics to do the hard work for you. The less you claim and the safer your record, the less your premium will ultimately be, regardless of your gender.

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